1. Recycle As Much As Possible

Recycling is becoming popular, but many people still do not recycle as much as they could. If you have conveniently labeled boxes or bags to place recyclable items, it will become an easy habit to maintain.

2. Turn the Heat Down

If you live in a place with cold winters, you may be able to turn the heat down a few degrees without sacrificing much comfort. Many people turn the heat up high enough so that they are comfortable in a t-shirt. If you can just get into the habit of wearing long sleeves, you can save on energy.

3. Easy On the Air Conditioning

The same is true for air conditioning in the summer. In many cases, having a couple of exhaust fans in the window will cool the room nicely. Save air conditioning for truly sweltering days.

4. Use Less Paper

Cut down on paper usage by doing more tasks online. If you order from mail order companies, request that they don’t send you physical catalogs. Most people can easily cut the amount of paper they use in half.

5. Use Natural Cleaning Products

Commercial dishwashing and laundry detergent and house cleaners have harsh chemicals which are bad for the environment. Use gentle cleaning supplies. You can find natural and organic cleaning products or use inexpensive household items like vinegar or lemon juice for many cleaning tasks.

6. Raise Green Kids

If children are brought up to believe in recycling what they can, not wasting and respecting the environment, it will be natural to them.

7. Minimize Driving

Even if you live in a place that requires an automobile, there are many ways to reduce the amount of driving you do. Walk or bicycle short distances; you can also consider a scooter or moped for one-person trips where trunk space is not needed. Take public transportation when convenient. Carpool to work. Shop strategically so that you can make fewer trips to the store. This saves time as well as fuel and energy! These simple tips can help you make your house a green home. Once you give it some thought, you can think of lots more ways!

KEEP GOING GREEN!
Lynne

Here are some simple strategies that you can implement:

1. Drive Less, Walk More

This is advantageous in three ways – it helps the environment, it saves you money and it’s good for your health! Sometimes driving cannot be avoided, but try to cut down on the number of trips to the grocery store or mall, carpool when possible and walk or ride a bicycle when you can.

2. Clean Green

Join the “clean green” movement by buying natural or organic cleaning products, or by using inexpensive household products like vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice. These products are less toxic for your home, family and pets. They are also better for the environment than products that use harsh chemicals that end up in our air, ground soil and water supplies.

3. Make Your Pets Green

You can enlist your furry friends to help the environment as well. Natural and organic pet foods, shampoos, flea and tick repellents and other pet supplies are now easily found.

4. Keep Temperatures Comfortable but Moderate

If you want to save money on your electric bill and help the environment, set your heat to 68 degrees in winter and 78 degrees in summer.

5. Shop Locally

Food and other items that have to be shipped long distances use up a lot more energy than those produced in your own community. Look for farmer’s markets for your produce and local stores for your shopping needs.

6. Create A Simple Recycling System

Make it easy for your household to recycle. Have a system everyone understands and share responsibilities to keep it in order. Use clearly marked bins, boxes or bags for recycled item like glass, newspapers and metal.

7. Go Paperless

You can cut down on paper use by paying bills and conducting transactions online.  Also try to cut down on the number of junk mail lists you are on.

8. Check Your Home’s Insulation

If your home is well insulated, you can cut down on heating costs, which saves energy for everyone. If you are really ambitious, you can look into alternative energy options like solar, which can reduce energy usage even more.

9. Eat Less Meat

Not everyone wants to be a vegetarian, but by even cutting back on your meat consumption you are helping the environment. Factory farms are a major source of energy consumption, as it’s very expensive to raise all those animals and feed them. If you do eat meat, consider patronizing local farms that use natural or organic methods of production.

10. Look For More Ways to Recycle

Recycling just means reusing something. Many things people buy new could be bought much cheaper used without much sacrifice. This includes cars, clothing, furniture, toys and electronic gadgets. In the same manner, pass things on to others when you finished with them rather than sending them to the dump.

These simple strategies can help spark your imagination to find your own ways to help the environment.

Keep Going Green!
Lynne

Fireplace inserts come in a variety of sizes to fit all types of fireplaces. They also come in many styles, shapes, colors, and features to suit all tastes and styles. You can find an insert that will compliment basically any type of décor. Many manufacturers also augment the operation of fireplace inserts by offering state-of-the-art features such as fans and thermostatic controls. High quality and efficiency allows you to maximize your heat output with less need for wood. You want to choose models that are equipped with a sturdy pan to collect the ash and which are constructed with state of the art cast iron. Most models have a longer over night burning duration, and you want to make sure yours does if you want your house to be heated through the night without having to kick on the heat. You also want to have accessible controls that are designed on the unit and a thermostat to control the fan for desired heating levels.

The installation is fairly easy. Once the insert is installed it looks like a custom designed unit. Fireplace inserts are made from cast iron or steel and have self-cleaning glass doors that allow the dancing flames of the fire to be viewed while the insulated doors remain closed, making the fire more efficient.

If you have a fireplace and want to become energy efficient, environmentally friendly, add an amazing, breathtaking view to your home, and most importantly cut the costs of your current heating bills, then fireplace inserts will be the solution for you and your family.

Keep Going Green,

Jay

In my non-Internet life I own 3 shops.  2 of the shops are antiques centres, and one is an art gallery.  I have been working on an ebook for sometime about ‘How To Make Money From Your Art’ and I decided to use this opportunity to bring to you some of the ideas I have included in the ebook. 

To start this short series I would like to talk today about the presentation of your artwork.  Essentially you will find a lot of the time this is a big factor in whether you sell or do not sell, but more importantly, it will factor greatly in the decision by a gallery to hang your pictures.  If your artwork is badly framed a gallery will not take your work in for you.

Always get your artwork framed and mounted properly.  If you go to a low cost store and by a pre-made frame your artwork will look cheap.  Go to a good quality framers, listen their advice, and make sure you present your piece of work in the best possible way.

If you feel you cannot afford the framing costs straight away try to sell a few unframed, mounted pieces of work and put the money aside to use for framing other works.  Remember, you are investing in your future business.

If you do not know a reliable framer visit a few galleries or artist’s studios and ask for recommendations.  Then visit a few of the framers with a piece of your artwork and see what they suggest and how much a good framing service will cost.

In terms of pricing your artwork, if you do not have any idea where to pitch it, as a rule of thumb items should be at least two and a half times the cost of framing.  This, of course, is only if you use a professional framer – and you may value your work at a much higher price, but this is the minimum you should set it at.

You will find in the long run using a quality framers will be a great investment as it totally improves the presentation of your artwork. 

If you would like to visit my other sites please check out my two antiques centres at http://fakenhamantiques.co.uk, http://shirehallplainantiques.co.uk, you can see my art gallery at http://artnextthesea.co.uk and I also run a spiritual site at http://isanybodyoutthere.co.uk if you are interested to know a bit more about spiritualism.

Enjoy the journey.

Mandy

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Mandy,

Thanks for another one of your terrific posts.  Everyone else, please be sure to take the time to check out Mandy’s sites.  They are all wonderful and worth the time.

Jay

A Birth Certificate shows that we were born

A Death Certificate shows that we died
Pictures show that we lived!
Have a seat . . . Relax . . . And read this slowly.

I Believe…
That just because two people argue,
It doesn’t mean they don’t love each other.
And just because they don’t argue,
It doesn’t mean they do love each other.

I Believe…
That we don’t have to change friends if
We understand that friends change.

I Believe…..
That no matter how good a friend is, they’re going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

I Believe…
That true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance.
Same goes for true love.
I Believe…
That you can do something in an instant
That will give you heartache for life..

I Believe…
That it’s taking me a long time
To become the person I want to be.

I Believe…
That you should always leave loved ones with
Loving words. It may be the last time you see them..

I Believe…
That you can keep going long after you think you can’t.

I Believe…
That we are responsible for what
We do, no matter how we feel.

I Believe…
That either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I Believe…
That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I Believe…
That money is a lousy way of keeping score.

I Believe…
That my best friend and I, can do anything, or nothing and have the best time.

I Believe…
That sometimes the people you expect to kick you When you’re down, will be the ones to help you get back up.

I Believe…
That sometimes when I’m angry I have the right to be angry, 
But that doesn’t give me the right to be cruel.

I Believe…
That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you’ve had
And what you’ve learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you’ve celebrated.

I Believe…
That it isn’t always enough to be forgiven by others.
Sometimes, you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I Believe…
That no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn’t stop for your grief.

I Believe…
That our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are,
But, we are responsible for who we become.

I Believe…
That you shouldn’t be so eager to find
Out a secret. It could change your life Forever.

I Believe…
Two people can look at the exact same
Thing and see something totally different.

I Believe…
That your life can be changed in a matter of
Hours by people who don’t even know you.

I Believe…
That even when you think you have no more to give, when
A friend cries out to you – you will find the strength to help.

I Believe…
That credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.

I Believe…
That the people you care about most in life are taken from you too soon.

I Believe…
That you should send this to all of the people that you believe in, I just did.

‘The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; They just make the most of everything.

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Thank you God for all the wonderful people who help us throughout the journey of life…

Jay

The first thing to keep in mind is that you can make your garden much more immune to pests simply by starting off with a good gardening structure.  For instance, make sure that you rotate your plants, which will make the pests of one year completely obsolete the next.  The use of compost and mulching can also keep pests off.  Remember that plants that are native to your area will always be tougher in the face of natural pests, and that having a wide variety of plants will encourage fewer pests as well, due to the fact that the plants will “protect” each other.

When considering natural pest control, make it your business to encourage the natural predators of your pests.  For instance, ladybugs, birds, moss, certain fungi and ground beetles are all beneficial to a garden, and you’ll find that keeping a natural garden will encourage them as well.  Check at your local garden shop for any recommendations, or anything that you can do to encourage these animals and plants to help you out.

Regular garden maintenance will also help you keep the pests down.  Whenever you see any small, weak or dying plants, pull them out.  They may be infected, and even if they are not, they will provide a place for pests to nest.  Pull the plant out and keep it from the rest of your garden.  Similarly, keep your garden clear of debris, use clan mulch and weed regularly.  Doing this can help with your water irrigation and keep your garden growing healthily as well.

You’ll find that natural pest control is quite easy once you learn about the pests that are troubling you.  Remember that every problem has a natural solution your garden, so look around for the solutions that you need!